5th Sunday of Lent Year A Homily

Martha’s heart was filled with grief pertaining to the death of Lazarus. She cried out to the Lord from the depths of such grief, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” In the midst of our own grief we must join with her in the tension that exists between what we have lost and the belief that God has the power to heal us.

Martha does not remain lost in her sorrow. Instead she turns towards the Lord and places her trust in Him, “But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.” She does not ignore the pain that was present in her life, but faces it be joining it to God. We too in the midst of our own grief cannot ignore what we feel, but must turn towards the Lord in faith.

Jesus’ response to her should bring faith unto our hearts, “I am the resurrection and the life.” Through such a statement Martha is being directed unto Him and the hope of what will spring forth through such an encounter. The Lord continues to join with us in our grief in order that we may move forth infused with the virtue of hope.

The belief that Jesus is the Resurrection is not a rejection of physical death, but the hope that life continues. From the First Preface for the Dead, “Life has changed, but not ended.” Our spirit does not cease with our death and so we as Christians must live as one who is oriented towards such a reality.

As the Lord asks, “Do you believe this?” This is a invitation that is made in order that we may enter into relationship with Him. Faith is not something that is to be passive, but is to be a conscious act of the will. It is a “yes” that allows God’s grace to enter in and transform us into living a life modeled after His.

Martha’s response was “Yes, Lord.” At the Easter Vigil we will have the opportunity to make a renewal of our baptismal vows. Through such a renewal we are not just giving the right answer to the question asked, but are consciously proclaiming our desire to live as one who has been marked for Christ Jesus through the life giving waters of baptism.

And so today we celebrate the third scrutiny with the Elect. Just Jesus commanded the stone to be rolled away from the tomb of Lazarus does He call our elect and too each of us to freed to from the sin and fear that keeps us from the fullness of life. In such a way we freely come to state “Yes, Lord” as we journey towards the Easter sacraments and strive to live as children of God.

Just like Martha we have our own fears, regrets, and sorrows as symbolized by the tomb. Nevertheless, the Lord continues to invite us out of the darkness and into the light of His presence. It is this light that we continue to prepare to behold as we approach Easter and that fact that the darkness of sin and death has been removed from our midst. 

4th Sunday of Lent Year A Homily

Saint Augustine stated, “That blind man is the human race; for this blindness had place in the first man, through sin, from whom we all draw our origin… every man is born mentally blind.”

The act of mixing saliva with dust in order to create clay takes us back to the Book of Genesis. From Genesis we are told, “Then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being.”

The Hebrew word Adam is related to adamah, meaning “ground” or “earth.” The Hebrew word used for “formed” is the same used for a potter who shapes clay. We have been deliberately shaped by God, formed in His image. To breathe into one’s nostrils represents the soul given to us by God.

In our Gospel Jesus is forming the blind man’s sight from the earth just as God had formed the first man from the earth. In other words it is being suggested that Jesus is the “New Adam” who uses the elements of creation in order to finish the work of creation in this man as well as us. It was through the Fall that humanity returned to the dust of sin, but Christ is the “New Adam” who has lifted us back up.

As we continue this Lenten journey, we must look ahead toward the Lord and place our trust in Him. It is so easy to set our sights on trivial matters of worldly allure; instead, we must allow Him to lift us up. Through the grace given especially in the sacramental life of the Church, we are formed into true disciples of the Lord.

Wit this in mind today is the second of three Scrutinies for those among us preparing to enter the life-giving waters of Baptism. The anointing you have already received is the beginning of faith—much like the clay applied to the blind man. The washing the blind man underwent represents the baptism you will soon receives which washes away Original Sin. Just as the blind man was given sight, we are enlightened so that we may no longer live in the darkness of sin.

On this Laetare Sunday, let us rejoice in all that the Lord has done for us. We were once blind to the truth of God through sin, but we are constantly being invited to wash away that sin through Christ’s mercy, that we may see the world through the lens of the Gospel. Let this transformation be brought about within us as we continue to prepare the way to celebrate the Easter mysteries.

3rd Sunday of Lent Year A Homily

The Israelites were liberated from their slavery by passing through the Red Sea. Now they were toiling about in the desert and were found not only uncomfortable, but dying. From this plight Moses come before God and he was instructed to “strike the rock.” From this rock flowed water which quenched their thirst.

Saint Paul would state that this “Rock was Christ.” It is for this reason that Christ is able to grant something greater than the simple quenching of thirst. The Lord is able to offer us the gifts of Sanctifying Grace. This gift allows us to participate in the very life of God. Through such an interaction with Him and the gift of the Spirit we move from being a consumer, always thirsty, to finding our fill in His Divine Life.

This transformation is realized within the Sacrament of Baptism. Not only are we being washed within these waters, but we are also being filled. We are sent forth from these waters not as if unchanged, but truly changed in Christ. We are sent forth from His midst living for Him and the joy that proceeds from this relationship.

On this 3rd Sunday of Lent we celebrate the First Scrutiny. Here we join our prayers for those who are now journeying towards the Easter sacraments especially the sacrament of baptism. We pray that any spirit of dryness may be cast out, so that the living water of baptism may flow freely.

We find ourselves like the Israelites who had such thirst. We thirst for so much through our grief, anxiety, and the pursuit of things that do not satisfy. The woman in our Gospel was caught up in such pursuits as she came to the well. Nevertheless, through a true encounter with Christ her thirst was forever quenched.

We too must allow the Lord to quench our thirst as He quenched the thirst of this woman. He sees us in our need and invites us to enter more fully into communion with Him. If we are to undergo such conversion and have our thirst quenched then we must allow Him to heal us of all that holds us captive.

The sacrament of confession heals us in such a way as we turn towards the infinite mercy of God. This Thursday our parish will hold its Lenten Penance Service at 6pm with a total of eight priests assisting with confessions. If you have been away from the sacrament for a long time use this opportunity to be reconciled with God and live.

We must ask ourselves if we are running towards wells which leave us empty (wealth, pleasure, power, honor) or do we turn our sight toward the Lord. It He who invites “Let anyone who thirsts come to me and drink.” What barrier do we continue to put in the way of such fulfillment and are we willing to remove it in order that may finally come to place our trust in the Lord?

2nd Sunday of Lent Year A Homily

Every year on the 2nd Sunday of Lent we always  hear concerning the Transfiguration of the Lord. The Greek word for Transfiguration is metamorphosis. Metamorphosis translates, "to be changed in form" or "to be transformed." The Greek metamorphosis used in this context describes a change in appearance and not a change in essence.

Such a transformation was true of our Lord on Mount Tabor. Here He did not change in nature, but a veil was pulled back to reveal who He had been all along. On this mount His humanity did not change into divinity, but His divinity which was hidden was allowed to shine through. Through such a glimpse His clothing became “white as light.”

Lent is the path which leads us towards Holy Week and the crucifixion. Through such a glimpse we are given a reminder of His divine glory which serves as the hope of the Resurrection in the midst of all the darkness that we must sustain. Through such a glimpse we are allotted courage to continue to move forward day by day just like the Apostles.

We are only in the second week of Lent, but maybe we are already growing weary when it pertains to our Lenten resolves which started out so passionately. Through such a glimpse into the Lord’s Divinity we should realize the purpose of why we do what we do and continue to do it with the Lord’s help.

As Saint Thomas Aquinas put it, “Christ enjoyed this splendor for a moment to encourage his disciples to endure the trials that were to come.” This is the divine foretaste necessary to continue to move forward. This is the hope that we must continue to enjoy in the midst of those trials that come our way because Christ has already won victory upon the cross and so we can endure.

Hopefully all the sacrifices that we have committed ourselves to during this Lenten season have a purpose. Hopefully they were not chosen just because of some perceived need to give something up, but because we realized the need to bring about a proper transformation within us. Through such a transformation we are able change our appearance to be more Christlike.

As Saint Paul puts it in his Letter to the Romans, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind.” This is precisely what we ought to be setting out to do during this season of Lent. This season is here not in order that we may continue to trudge throughout life without a purpose, but that we may come to live for Christ.

Let us come to live for Christ as the Apostles would eventually come to live for Him. Through this glimpse into His Transfiguration they were given the hope to continue to move forward. Through such a glimpse may we continue to move forward each day placing our trust in the Lord and bringing about that transformation which is necessary for us.

1st Sunday of Lent Year A Homily

Today we commemorate the first Sunday in the season of Lent. Here we enter into the confines of the desert with Jesus and while there we are reminded of the importance of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Through this season we come to strip away the noise of this world in order that we may finally come to hear the voice of God that is being made manifest in our life.

Jesus’ time spent in the desert points towards what took place in the garden. Here we discover a parallel between the fall of Adam and the victory of Christ. Adam had everything that he would ever need in the garden and yet he fell while Christ had nothing in this desert and yet He held firm. Jesus is the “New Adam” because He undoes the knot of disobedience tied by the first Adam.

In the desert the devil comes in order to tempt Jesus, but He overcomes these assaults and lies which come His way. Adam was tempted in such manner inside of the garden, but he fell to the deceptions which were thrust upon him. The devil is unable to create and so he twists that which has been created to where it no longer meets its God given purpose.

The first temptation that we are presented with deals with bread and thus our physical hunger. Adam was tempted in such a way through the fruit of the tree. The devil wants us to believe that our way to happiness is through the fulfillment of earthly pleasures be they food, drink, sex, wealth, or anything else that has become disordered instead of meeting its God given purpose.

The second temptation suggests that Jesus throw Himself off the temple in order to force God’s hand. This is the sin of presumption, that same sin committed by Adam and Eve that they could determine that which is right or wrong for themselves. Through submitting to such a temptation we attempt to use God as a tool for own validation instead of submitting to Him with trust.

The third temptation deals with the desire for power and thus “being like gods.” Adam was led to believe that eating of the fruit would grant him divine autonomy. In the desert the devil offers Jesus all the kingdoms of the world in exchange for worship. This becomes the temptation to prioritize our own will over the humble service that God asks from us.

These forty days of Lent are an opportunity to reorient ourselves to God where such orientation is needed. By fasting we tell our body that we do not need such worldly pleasures in order to be fulfilled. By our almsgiving we reject the allure of power and wealth, and through our prayer we silence the voice of the tempter in order that God’s voice may be heard.

With courage let us look towards Christ who overcame the devil with scripture and obedience. We are not alone in our temptations for we are assisted with the grace that is given to us by God. Through such grace we can preserve until the end assuming we desire to strive to fight against such assaults. Let us remember that the “New Adam” has already won this battle and so there is hope for us we move towards Easter that we might rise with Him fully alive and transformed.